Carl Lawrence

Introduction

Carl Lawrence is a 50-year-old man from Kentwood, Michigan, who ran a business-consulting firm and was sentenced on October 20, 2026, to 70 months in federal prison for his role in a scheme to defraud the Paycheck Protection Program, the COVID-19 relief program designed to safeguard jobs during the pandemic. U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Hall imposed the sentence in the District of Delaware. According to court documents, Lawrence met Wilmington tax preparer Jady Solano over the internet, referred his consulting clients to her for fraudulent PPP applications, and personally falsified documents for inclusion in those applications. He assisted with 29 fraudulent applications that produced more than $4.7 million in wrongful loan disbursements and personally made nearly $450,000, all of which he was ordered to forfeit.

Background Information

The Paycheck Protection Program was the federal government’s pandemic-era lifeline for small businesses: forgivable loans meant to keep workers on payrolls when COVID-19 shuttered the economy. The scheme Lawrence joined corrupted that program at scale. He and Solano — a tax preparer based in Wilmington, Delaware — obtained approximately $9.1 million in pandemic relief funds in total, and the fraud ring they led eventually drew charges against eight members across two charging instruments in Delaware federal court. Lawrence’s role was the referral pipeline: his consulting clients became Solano’s fraudulent applicants, and his own document falsification made the applications look legitimate.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Convicted and sentenced. Carl Lawrence was sentenced on October 20, 2026, to 70 months in federal prison, three years of supervised release, restitution of $4,736,088.37, and a forfeiture money judgment of $447,061.77, after court documents established his role in the PPP fraud conspiracy.

According to court documents, Lawrence ran a business-consulting firm and, over the internet, met Jady Solano, a Wilmington tax preparer. The two conspired to defraud the PPP. Lawrence referred his consulting clients to Solano, who prepared fraudulent applications on their behalf, and Lawrence also personally falsified documents for inclusion in the applications. In total, Lawrence assisted with 29 fraudulent applications, resulting in more than $4.7 million in wrongful loan disbursements.

The sentencing announcement laid out the full roster of the scheme in a case-status table. Jady Solano, who led the scheme with Lawrence, was sentenced to 80 months in prison with restitution of $9,181,830.99. Shatoya Moss received 18 months; Marvin Edwards received 16 months; Brigette Miller-Levy received 24 months. Amber Baldwin and Devlon Porter were convicted at trial and await sentencing. Anthony McKinzy was indicted and remains at large after absconding. The overall scheme led by Lawrence and Solano obtained approximately $9.1 million in pandemic relief funds. For the two defendants not yet adjudicated, their involvement remains merely an allegation, and they are presumed innocent.

Upon release from prison, Lawrence will be required to serve three years of supervised release. The court ordered restitution of $4,736,088.37 — the full amount of the wrongful disbursements tied to his 29 applications — and a forfeiture money judgment of $447,061.77, capturing the nearly $450,000 he personally made through the scheme.

Public Reaction and Consequences

U.S. Attorney Benjamin L. Wallace said: “Stealing taxpayer money is always a serious crime. But it is particularly serious when that money was meant to keep hardworking Americans employed during a pandemic. Carl Lawrence stole, and helped others steal, millions in disaster-relief funds. He’ll now spend years in federal prison, and, upon release, he’ll be forced to pay back every cent of his ill-gotten gains.” FBI Baltimore Special Agent in Charge Jimmy Paul said: “Carl Lawrence thought he could dupe the federal government and swindle American taxpayers. Instead, every dollar he stole will be forfeited and federal prison will be his home for the next six years.” IRS Criminal Investigation Philadelphia Field Office Special Agent in Charge Yury Kruty said the sentencing “holds Mr. Lawrence accountable for his criminal actions.”

The case was investigated by agents of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and the FBI Baltimore Field Office’s Wilmington Resident Agency, and prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Wallace and Assistant U.S. Attorney Bryan C. Williamson. The Justice Department framed the prosecution as part of its post-April 7 National Fraud Enforcement Division effort, which supports the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance.

Current Status

Lawrence’s case is resolved at the sentencing stage: 70 months in federal prison imposed October 20, 2026, by Judge Jennifer L. Hall, followed by three years of supervised release, restitution of $4,736,088.37, and forfeiture of $447,061.77. The sentencing announcement was published on October 23, 2026, under case number 1:24-cr-109-JLH. Within the wider scheme, two trial-convicted co-defendants await sentencing and one indicted co-defendant remains at large.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Lawrence’s consulting business was the very instrument of the fraud — the client pipeline that fed 29 fraudulent PPP applications — and the sentence of nearly six years in federal prison ends his professional life for its duration. The restitution order of $4,736,088.37 and the forfeiture of his roughly $450,000 in scheme proceeds mean the financial benefit of the scheme is fully clawed back. At 50, he will leave federal prison in his mid-fifties with a federal fraud felony conviction, a multi-million-dollar debt to the government, and three years of supervised release to follow.

Sources

• U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Delaware, “Michigan Man Sentenced to 70 Months for Pandemic Relief Fraud,” published October 23, 2026 — source